Tomato Russian Red GRAFTED ORGANIC

The Russian Red Tomato is a late variety with large, bright red fruits weighing 300 to 600 g, often more. Slightly ribbed at the shoulders and flattened at the top, when sliced it reveals firm and juicy flesh, flavorful and sweet with musky accents. This tomato is suitable for all culinary variations, but we particularly enjoy it in fresh soups, stuffed dishes, or pies. This variety is fairly late and disease resistant. Planting of plug plants is done from April to June after the last frost when the plants have reached about fifteen cm. The Russian Red Tomato is harvested from July to October.

The Tomato originates from South America and Central America. Several varieties were already cultivated by the Incas long before the arrival of the Conquistadors. The term "Tomato" comes from the Inca "Tomatl" and refers to both the plant and the fruit it produces. It is one of the many foods that came to us from the New World, along with beans, corn, squash, potatoes, and chili peppers. The Tomato took considerably longer to reach our taste buds. And for good reason: for a long time, it was cultivated for its aesthetic and medicinal qualities, but it was considered toxic because of its resemblance to the fruit of the Mandrake, another member of the Solanaceae family. It only became a regular on our tables from the beginning of the 20th century.

The Tomato is a perennial herbaceous plant in tropical climates, but is cultivated as an annual in our latitudes. It becomes lignified over time and produces small, insignificant yellow flowers grouped in cymes that will transform into fruits. Tomatoes are grown in open ground but can also be grown in containers on a balcony, favoring varieties with compact growth.

It is a fruit vegetable that offers many nutritional benefits. Low in calories like most vegetables, rich in water, it contains a particularly interesting molecule: lycopene, a powerful antioxidant. It is also rich in vitamin C, provitamin A, and trace elements.

In terms of cooking, Tomatoes can be consumed raw or cooked in multiple ways: in salads or as appetizers, grilled, stuffed, marinated, preserved, in ratatouille, or as a sauce... They come in all colors, shapes, and sizes. Take advantage of this and cultivate several varieties in your vegetable garden to vary your pleasures!

Harvesting: Harvest periods vary depending on the precocity: early varieties are harvested from 55 to 70 days after planting, mid-season varieties from 70 to 85 days, and late varieties beyond 85 days. Harvesting is done when the Tomato has acquired its final color and when its texture, while remaining firm, shows slight softening. For better preservation, be sure to pick the fruit with its peduncle. Be careful, immature fruits, stems, and leaves contain solanine and should not be consumed.

Storage: The optimal storage temperature for tomatoes is between 10 and 15°C (50 and 59°F). Refrigeration is possible but alters the taste qualities of the fruits. For longer storage, Tomatoes can be preserved, dried, frozen, canned, or cooked into jam. To preserve them, cut your tomatoes in half and collect the juice. Place your half tomatoes face up on a baking sheet. Season with salt, pepper, and sugar, then bake at a very low temperature for at least an hour. Remove your tomatoes, store them in a glass jar, and cover with olive oil.

Gardener's Tip: To reduce watering, we recommend mulching the soil with thin successive layers of grass clippings, if possible mixed with dead leaves. This protection, which keeps the soil moist, also limits weed growth.